This is the last Halo 3 Beta video I’ll ever post here. It opens up in less than a week and then we’ll overrun with clever videos and the urgency will be gone.
That said, I am posting this one because its the best look I’ve seen at the 3 Beta maps and a really great look at not only the portable jump pad but also the Spartan Laser. Can’t wait to see if this dispaces the Rocket Launcher as the Anti-Vehicle weapon of choice.

Its been some time since Valve and EA announced they’d bring the stunning Half Life 2 to the Xbox 360 & PS3. Its been an even longer time since Valve commited to an episodic sequel instead of a full on development of Half Life 3.

Valve’s updated their Steam service with news that Episode 2 is nearly complete! This is great news because it means they can get it up for download very soon and the wait is almost over. Well thats great news for PC Gamers anyway.

Console folks like myself can rest easy knowing that full focus will soon shift toward completing Episode 2 for consoles, to be released in the “Orange Box” edition with the new online Multiplayer Team Fortress 2 and the gravity physics puzzle game Portal, not to mention the full release of Half Life 2 and Episode 1. Even at the premium price of $59.99 for a next gen game, thats a crazy amount of content!

Hey, thats not all, Game Head went to Valve’s offices recently, and you can watch the full episode below…
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I love me some Geometry Wars. At only $5, its the best value of any game on Xbox Live Arcade, and the intense gameplay makes for a quick time killer to hours long repeat attempts to best a high score.

GameTrailers user Lloyd1337 has uploaded a video running through all 12 Achievements in one game. Its a little sped up to keep it under 10 minutes, but its pretty easy to tell this guy is a master. He doesn’t even die once until after he’s hit 1.3 million points! And from there he still piles on another 2 million! On their message board Lloyd mentions he needs a new controller “because the thumbsticks on the one I have now are getting worn down from all this GW” Outstanding work.

Turn down your speakers before getting too far into this video, but heartily enjoy the feast for the eyes. Halo 2’s best map, Zanzibar, is back as “Last Resort”

The inside of the base is completely different, but before long the player is looking around the outside and you see how far this has come. You’ll also get a taste of the Spartan Laser and the ATV.

I can’t wait to play Assault here.

As the 360’s Spring Update and the Halo 3 Beta come closer and closer, Microsoft dropped a rather big surprise on us today! A rather large and unexpected list of newly added backwards compatible Xbox titles for the 360! Namely Sega’s Jet Set Radio Future, Panzer Dragoon Orta, Star Wars Rupublic Commando and some very high profile 2D fighters have been added to the list. This is probably one of the strongest updates released and should please anyone still interested in the service.

Read on for the full list.
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Just my quick kneejerk reactions to the newly released maps to Halo 2. They went up for purchase in the content downloader this morning for $4. Note this is the Halo 2 content downloader, not Xbox Live Marketplace.

This first thing that strikes me about these maps is some of the weapon choices. Tombstone’s default start is the Battle Rifle, and with good reason as its too big to use SMG or Plasma weapons to start. The Sentinel Beam also makes a return appearance in Desolation. 2 Halo mainstays are completely missing from the weapon set: Plasma pistol and Sniper Rifle. This can be changed easily in a custom game, and I’m sure Tombstone will become a popular sniper map, but its kinda odd for them to be missing. Neither map supports vehicles or turrets from what I can tell, which further narrows the gameplay. I think the designers were trying really hard to bring orignal Halo multiplayer into Halo 2

Also, neither map feels like Halo 2. While any of the original maps felt like they were plucked from the single player campaign, these look more like arena maps more common to Quake. Tombstone in particular has lots of hallways and ramps everywhere, and it doesn’t have the organic feel of Halo 2. It is a remake of Halo: Combat Evolved’s “Hang ‘Em High” map, and its still really fun to play capture the flah, oddball, and King Of The Hill, but the geometric nature and screwy structure choices seperate it from a map like “Turf” where the art style kept you within the Halo universe even in the free for all multiplayer games.

Ultimately the maps appear well worth the money as they will add some new life to the game and its been a good 2 years since I’ve grabbed a flag and had no idea where to take it and thats a fun feeling. Just don’t expect a new classic like Lockout, Terminal, or Relic. The best way to play these maps will be with friends, so send a friend request on Xbox Live to me, and we’ll get in some games in the upcoming Powet.TV Game Night for Halo 2 on April 28-29!

So what do you think of the new maps? Was a throwback to Halo: CE welcome in the last days of Halo 2? Leave a comment below!

While arcade perfect and enhanced for online play, Capcom’s release of Street Fighter II Turbo on Xbox Live Arcade was not without faults. The dated graphics and lack of widescreen support didn’t hinder the timeless gameplay, but it didn’t add anything.

Capcom is now committed to beefing up their support of Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network with new releases of Super Puzzle Fighter II in the summer and Super Street Fighter II Turbo in the fall. But they won’t be ports, they’ll be completely remade and redrawn from scratch to take full advantage of 1080p High Definition displays. The masters at Udon comics will handle the artwork and designs, while Backbone Entertainment will recreate the games.

1up got some comments from Backbone’s Christian Svensson that you can read here.

So the full title is Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix… wow, what a mouthful. A pity its not a fully new Street Fighter IV, but if Capcom insists on milking their classics, at least they’re not being lazy about it and giving the games the full on Mario Allstars treatments!

In related news, a not online, not enhanced, not arcade perfect, SNES port of Street Fighter II Turbo is coming to Wii Virtual Console soon. It will be $8, just like the regular Street Fighter II you just bought.

A news roundup for Guitar Hero Fans

First, on Red Octane’s knowledge database yesterday they accidentally revealed Guitar Hero III is coming to PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii this winter. Kotaku has the info before it was pulled from the site.

Good: 9 Tracks from Guitar Hero have been made available on Xbox Live Market Place for Guitar Hero II!
Bad: They’re in three packs of three, costing 500 points each.
Ugly: At this rate, to make the entire songlist of Guitar Hero available, it would cost over 7800 points, $98 US Dollars.
We’re off to a bad start if this is the way it goes, because 47 old songs shouldn’t cost more than a full game of 78 with a guitar. Hopefully future packs won’t be quite as steep, or they’ll balance it with some sponsored content or even brand new songs. Pile this on to the numerous defective guitars, and Guitar Hero on next-gen is off to a rocky start.